Geography of Bihar: Bihar is located in the eastern region of India. It is a land-locked state having boundaries with three Indian states namely Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal. Bihar shares its border with Nepal in the north, Uttar Pradesh in the west, Jharkhand in the south and West Bengal in the east.
Here, we are giving the complete study material of ‘Geography of Bihar’ that will ease the journey of aspirants to crack the competitive examinations like BPSC and other state-level examinations.
Geography of Bihar
- Longitudinal extent – 83º19’ E to 88°7’ E
- Latitudinal extent – 24°20’ N to 27°3’ N
- Distance from east to west – 483 km
- Distance from north to south – 345 km
- Bihar has boundaries with the states of UP, Jharkhand and West Bengal. It also borders Nepal in the north.
- Length of Nepal border – 601 km
- 7 Districts that border Nepal in the west to east direction – West Champaran, East Champaran, Sitamarhi, Madhubani, Supaul, Araria, and Kishanganj
- 8 Districts that border UP in north to south direction – West Champaran, Gopalganj, Siwan, Saran, Bhojpur, Buxar, Kaimur, and Rohtas
- 8 Districts that border Jharkhand in the west to east direction – Rohtas, Aurangabad, Gaya, Nawada, Jamui, Banka, Bhagalpur, and Katihar
- 3 Districts that border WB in the north to south direction – Kishanganj, Purnia, and Katihar
- Ganga, Ghaghara and Gandak form boundary with UP in some parts
- Sone river forms a boundary with Jharkhand in Rohtas district
Geological Structure of Bihar
- Younger rocks to the north, older rocks to the south
- North-west is Terai, Central is Gangetic plain and south is a plateau region
- Bihar plain is the youngest to be formed
- Dharwar rocks – South-eastern Bihar – Jamui, Nawada, Munger districts
- Vindhyan rocks – South-western Bihar – Kaimur, Rohtas districts
- Plateau region – extends as a narrow belt from Kaimur district to Banka district
Climate of Bihar
- Continental Monsoon type climate
- The northern part is cooler compared to the southern part
- Eastern part receives 200 cm of rainfall while the western part receives 100 cm.
- April month has the lowest humidity
- The temperature of the eastern part is reduced due to the impact of the Nor’wester showers.
- Nor’wester – tropical cyclonic thunderstorm, extremely helpful for pre-Kharif crops
- Gaya is hottest in May while coldest in January.
Soils of Bihar
- Piedmont Swamp Soil – West-Champaran, supports rice, rich in organic matter
- Terai Soil – found in the Northern belt bordering Nepal, Champaran to Kishanganj, sugarcane, jute
- Bhangar – older alluvial soil -loamy, sticky, rich in lime, good for paddy and sugarcane, Patna and Gaya
- Khadar – younger alluvial soil – rich in nitrogen, good for paddy and wheat, Purina, Saharsa, Darbhanga
- Karail–Kewal soil – heavy clay, alkaline, from Rohtas to Bhagalpur, brown to yellow
- Tal soil – poor drainage, grey, high yield, from Buxar to Banka
- Balthar soil – the presence of iron, red and yellow, less fertile, in the transitional zone between Chhotanagpur plateau and Ganga plain, Kaimur to Rajmahal hills
- Bal Sundari - alkaline, Saharsa and Champaran, maize and tobacco
Ganga
- Enters at Chausa forming boundary of Bhojpur and Saran
- Northern tributaries – Ghaghra in Saran, Gandak at Sonepur, Bagmati at Munger, Kosi at Kursela, Kali-Kosi at Manihari
- Southern tributaries – Sone at Maner, Karmanasa at Chausa, Punpun at Fathua
- It has the largest catchment area in Bihar
- Mahatma Gandhi Setu – connects Patna in the south to Hajipur in north
Ghaghra / Saryu
- Originates at Nampa in Nepal
- Enters Bihar at Gopalganj
- Joins Ganga at Chhapra
Gandak
- Originates at Tibet
- Enters India near Triveni in Nepal,
- Forms boundary of Bihar and UP
- Enters Bihar at West Champaran
- Joins Ganga at Sonepur
- Triveni Canal gets water from this river
Burhi Gandak
- Originates at Someshwar hills in Chautarwa Chaur of West Champaran
- Flows parallel to river Gandak
- Joins Ganga at Khagaria
Kosi
- Notoriously known as Sorrow of Bihar for its changing of course
- It is made up of seven channels from Nepal known as Sapt Kosi
- Enters Bihar through Supaul
- Joins Ganga at Kursela in Katihar
Bagmati
- Originates in Shivpuri range in Nepal
- Enters Bihar in Sitamarhi
- Joins Kosi at Badlaghat
Kamla
- Originates in Mahabharat Range in Nepal near Sindhuliagarhi
- Enters Bihar in Madhubani
- Kamla Barrage has been constructed
- Joins river Bagmati at Badlaghat
Mahananda
- Originates in Sikkim
- Enters Bihar in Kishanganj
- Joins Ganga at Nawabganj in Bangladesh
- In upper course forms an important linguistic boundary between Hindi and Bengali speaking area.
Sone
- Originates in Amarkantak range in MP
- Joins Ganga near Maner
- Important tributaries are Rihand and North Koel
Punpun
- Originates in the Hazaribagh plateau
- Joins Ganga near Fatuha
- Causes heavy flood damage to the east of Patna city
Phalgu
- It is also known as Niranjana
- It is considered a sacred river and flows past Gaya
Waterfalls in Bihar
- Kakolat waterfall – in Nawada near Jharkhand border, fall of 160 ft
- Karkat waterfall – in the Kaimur hills near the Kaimur Wildlife Sanctuary
- Manjhar Kund and Dhua Kund – in Sasaram, utilized for power generation
Hot Springs
- Most of the Hot Springs are concentrated in Rajgir and Munger.
- Rajgir – Saptdhara, Surya Kund, Makhdum Kund, Brahma Kund
- Munger – Lakshman Kund, Rameshwar Kund, Gaumukh Kund, Sita Kund, Rishi Kund
Flora and Fauna
- Total forest area – 7299 sq. km, 7.75% of total area (1.04% of India’s forest) (IFR2017)
- Maximum forest area – Kaimur district
- Minimum forest area – Sheikhpura
- The total area under very dense forest is in West Champaran
- The moist deciduous forest is found in Kishanganj, West Champaran, Kaimur, Gaya etc.
- Dry Deciduous – most abundant in Bihar, Kaimur, Purnia, Raxaul etc.
- Valmiki National Park –located in West Champaran, established on 2nd August 1989
- Valmiki Tiger Reserve consists of Valmiki National Park and Valmiki Wildlife Sanctuary
- Bhimbandh Wildlife Sanctuary – Munger, south of Ganga, has several hot springs like Sita Kund and Rishi Kund, more famous for birds than land animals, established on 25 June 1976
- Kaimur Wildlife Sanctuary – Kaimur, Bengal Tigers are also found here, several waterfalls like Karkat and Telhar waterfall, the famous lake is Anupam Lake, established on 25 July 1979
- Gautam Buddha Wildlife Sanctuary – located in Gaya and Hazaribagh (Jharkhand), previously it was private hunting reserve, established on 14 September 1971
- Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary – Bhagalpur stretching from Sultanganj to Kahalgaon, only protected area for Gangetic Dolphins, established on 28 August 1990
- Sanjay Gandhi Jaivik Udyan – located in Patna, biological park combining a botanical garden with the zoo, established on 8th March 1983
Miscellaneous
- Total area – 94,163 sq. km (13th in India)
- Population – 10,40,99,452 (3rd in India)
- Decadal Growth Rate – 25.4%
- Population Density – 1106
- Sex Ratio – 918
- Child Sex Ratio – 935
- Literacy Rate – 61.8%
- Most Populated -Patna
- Least populated – Sheikhpura
- Most Dense – Sheohar (1880)
- Least Dense – Kaimur (488)
- Largest district Area Wise – West Champaran
- Smallest district Area Wise- Sheohar
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